First pitch: Friday, 5:30 p.m. ET
Line: Los Angeles -144, Washington +134, Total: 6.0

The National League East-champion Nationals and the NL West-champion Dodgers kick off their NLDS at Nationals Park.

The Dodgers (91-71) are in the postseason for the fourth consecutive season—they’ve won four straight division titles—but only once in that span, in 2013, did they advance to the NLCS. The Nats return to the postseason for the third time in five years after falling short in 2015. The franchise hasn’t advanced past the first round since 1981. Three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw (12-4, 1.69 ERA, 0.72 WHIP) will start the opener for the Dodgers, and he’ll be opposed by 2013 Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (20-7, 2.96 ERA, 0.97 WHIP). The Dodgers went 5-1 against the Nationals this season, and took two of three in D.C. Dave Roberts’ club played poorly away from Dodger Stadium this season, posting a mediocre 38-43 road record. The Nationals were tremendous at home, going 50-31.

The Dodgers have a dangerous lineup, led by Rookie of the Year favorite Corey Seager (.308, 26 HR, 72 RBI), 1B Adrian Gonzalez (.285, 18 HR, 90 RBI) and 3B Justin Turner (.275, 27 HR, 90 RBI). Gonzalez (5-for-28 with 1 2B) has struggled against Scherzer, though LF Howie Kendrick (.255, 8 HR, 40 RBI) is 5-for-14 against him and RF Josh Reddick (.281, 10 HR, 37 RBI) is 5-for-11 with a triple. Kershaw faced the Nationals once in 2016 and was brilliant, allowing just one earned run in seven innings for the win. He’s utterly dominated the Nationals in his career, going 10-2 with a 2.07 ERA. The Dodgers went 11-2 in those 13 starts. Kershaw has, surprisingly, been very shaky in his postseason career. He was solid in last year’s NLDS against the Mets, but in 64 2/3 playoff innings he’s just 2-6 with a 4.59 ERA and eight home runs allowed.

2B Daniel Murphy (.347, 25 HR, 104 RBI) played like an MVP in his first season with the Nationals, and he’ll look to build on one of the greatest postseason runs of all-time. Last season for the Mets, in his postseason debut, Murphy hit .328 with seven home runs in 14 games. He’s day-to-day with an upper leg injury, but is expected to play in the series opener. Manager Dusty Baker will need RF Bryce Harper (.243, 24 HR, 86 RBI, 21 SB), who had a very disappointing season, to find his rhythm and get hot. Rookie CF Trea Turner (.342, 13 HR, 40 RBI, 33 SB in 73 GP) is expected to be a major factor in this series. LF Jayson Werth (.244, 21 HR, 69 RBI) has hit Kershaw well in his career, going 10-for-32 with a pair of homers. Harper is just 1-for-15 against him—that one hit was a homer—and Murphy took Kershaw deep twice in last year’s NLDS. Scherzer didn’t face the Dodgers this season, and is 2-4 against them in his career with a 3.48 ERA. In 62 2/3 postseason innings, he’s 4-3 with a 3.73 ERA.